Actually, it’s a case of three McSerials for the price of one on McStorytellers today. We’ve published the latest instalments of Annie Christie’s The Soundtrack of Our Lives, and Kevin Crowe’s Behind Bars. Now it’s the turn of the opening instalment of Death Ship, Aberdeen-based Bill Kirton’s nineteenth century tale of murder most foul at sea.

The ship is hardly out of Norwegian waters when the first gruesome murder is discovered. The body count begins. Read the full story in Part One today. And get yourself back here in a week’s time for the next part.

It’s another case of two McSerials for the price of one on McStorytellers today. Hot on the heels of the latest instalment of Annie Christie’s The Soundtrack of Our Lives, here now is the fourth instalment of Wick-based writer Kevin Crowe’s gripping debut novel, Behind Bars.

Under the threat of retaliation by Kathleen’s pimp, she and Brendan are persuaded to set up home together in another part of Birmingham. But is it a case of out of the frying pan and into the fire? Find out today in Chapters Seven & Eight. Then get yourself back here in a fortnight’s time for the next instalment.

And remember, if you’ve missed any of the earlier instalments, you can catch up with them by tapping (or using your cursor to hover over) ​Oor McSerials in the left-hand sidebar and then following the trail.

Annie Christie is back in the McSerial slot this morning with the ninth track on Disc Two of her double album in prose, The Soundtrack of Our Lives.

After the depressing twentieth reunion of the Class of ’78, Jane returns to Edinburgh the following year, this time for a wedding. Different venue. But same people. And more tension. Read the full story in Track Nine now.

And remember, you can catch up with all the tracks on Disc One and those so far on Disc Two by tapping (or using your cursor to hover over) ​Oor McSerials in the left-hand sidebar and then following the trail.

But if you would rather read the whole double album in a oner, including all the tracks on Discs One and Two, get yourself over to the unco online bookshop and order the paperback of the McSerial today!

Not only does author, broadcaster and all-round good guy Bill Kirton debut his Death Ship McSerial here on McStorytellers tomorrow, but he also makes a very welcome return to the site today with a cheeky wee Beaujolais of a story.

When the snow is snowing, it’s time for something warming. Enjoy Haemoglobin Dot Com – but no’ wi’ your dinner!

We’re delighted to announce that Aberdeen-based author and veteran McStoryteller Bill Kirton is joining the ranks of our McSerial writers. Starting next week and weekly thereafter, we’ll be publishing a seven-part story of Bill's entitled Death Ship.

Here’s a wee taster of the story, straight from the horse's mouth (sorry, Bill!): 1841 and a simple enough commission: collect a ship and its cargo from Oslo and sail it back to Aberdeen for its new owner, William Anderson. But strong headwinds make for a slow passage and, worse, as the days pass, crew members are being systematically killed in excruciatingly painful ways. Not until they reach safety onshore in Aberdeen is the mystery solved.

So get yourself back here on Wednesday, McSerial Day, for the opening part of Death Ship. And don’t forget, you’ll also be able to read the latest instalments of Annie Christie’s weekly McSerial, The Soundtrack of Our Lives, and Kevin Crowe’s fortnightly McSerial, Behind Bars.

More than seven years ago, I set up a website called McStorytellers. Its purpose was to showcase the work of Scots-connected short story writers like myself. It was also intended to cock a snook at the plethora of middle-class, Middle-English short story sites I kept coming across at the time. Over the years, McStorytellers has had its ups and downs; more so its founder. But both it and I have persevered. In the words of a much more famous writer: So we beat on, boats against the current.

All of which preamble paves the way for me to announce that this week McStorytellers published its 1,000th short story. To mark that event, I’ve gone back through the site’s rather extensive archive of stories and selected my favourite dozen. The stories I’ve selected are not necessarily the best on the site, nor the most popular, but they are the ones that have stayed with me over time; the ones that, in my opinion, epitomise the art of short storytelling. I’ve included one of my own, because… well, just because.

So here they are. My McEditor’s Pick listed alphabetically by author’s first name.

Annie Christie is back in the McSerial slot this morning with the eighth track on Disc Two of her double album in prose, The Soundtrack of Our Lives.

Jane drives up from London to a posh restaurant in Edinburgh for the twentieth reunion of the Class of ’78. It’s a night full of surprises for her. And they’re not particularly pleasant ones. Read the full story in Track Eight now.

And remember, you can catch up with all the tracks on Disc One and those so far on Disc Two by tapping (or using your cursor to hover over) ​Oor McSerials in the left-hand sidebar and then following the trail.

But if you would rather read the whole double album in a oner, including all the tracks on Discs One and Two, get yourself over to the unco online bookshop and order the paperback of the McSerial today!

Edinburgh-born writer Laurence MacDonald returns to McStorytellers today with another of his spooky 19th century tales. And this one happens to be a finalist for last year’s Evesham Festival of Words anthology.

A storm at sea is imminent. There’s a lighthouse island not far away where shelter can be sought. But is the place manned? Find out in Stormbound.

Oor man in Macduff, Patrick Hutchison, returns to McStorytellers today to cheer up a dreich Monday with another tale, penned in his trademark Banffshire Doric, from the strange casebook of Doctor Festing Makadoork,